Blows to the Head

Blows to the Head

On Monday night, the bedside digital clock reads eleven-thirty-nine PM. My thirty-eight-year-old middle son flings open the door and crashes into our bedroom. Not that I’m asleep or anything—I’ve already awoken to suspicious thumps coming from the kitchen. My stomach clenches, my insides twist themselves into an infinity knot. And I start thinking about love. […]

Gray Areas

Gray Areas

I’m told that in twelve-step-style recovery meetings, they discourage sharing “war stories,” or telling about specific incidents of being under the influence. By not talking about using, or the surrounding drama, various triggers are avoided, the group can better focus on recovery—and hang onto those 30-day chips. The No War Stories rule also gently helps […]

Waiting for Morning

The original title of the book I wanted to write about my journey with three grown sons who are addicted to drugs and/or alcohol was IF MORNING EVER COMES. That if is important. If reflects my decades of praying, hoping, enabling, toughing, failing and flailing, all while desperately trying to keep hope alive. I’ve been […]